Fly Fishing 101

Fly Fishing 101

• What is Fly Fishing?  • Rod, Reel & Line  • Fly & Leader  • Tippets & Indicators

Going to the fly shop can be an intimidating experience for beginner anglers. We’ll help you boost your knowledge and confidence by providing all the getting-started basics right here. Find out what equipment you need, how to set it up, some basic casting skills and more.

What is Fly Fishing?

Fly fishing is a style of fishing, that uses the weight of the line to present the bait. This differs greatly from conventional fishing where you use the weight of the bait or lure to make your cast. Pure forms of fly fishing are done using a fly rod rather than a conventional rod, although conventional rods can be modified to cast flies.

Fishing with flies is an effective method for catching fish in any situation. When fly fishing the angler tries to imitate the natural food source of the fish rather than using non-native live bait such as a worm. Some fly imitations are made to trigger a response and do not represent any particular fly. Flies are fished sub surface to represent an immature specimen such as a pupae or larvae; this is wet fly fishing or "nymphing". They are also fished on the surface to mimic the adult stage; this is dry fly fishing.

There are various ways to present a fly. The most common is with a floating line on the surface of water. Many different methods are becoming increasingly popular; such as sink tip and full sinking lines that allow the angler to present the fly to the fish no matter where it lies in the water column.